I am a firm believer that SpongeBob Squarepants is one of the greatest animated series of all time or, to be more specific and honest, I think it was at its best up to the release of The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie in 2004. The following episodes - which aired on Nickelodeon after its creator, the late Stephen Hillenberg, left as showrunner - were not quite up to par with the quality of the previous seasons and the theatrically release spin-off in the eyes of many of the iconic cartoon’s biggest (and, especially, more adult) fans.
Yet, luckily, Tom Kenny’s porous goofball would become the star of two more feature-length adventures that seemed to give most fans just what they needed from the franchise in terms of humor, excitement, and unique, gorgeous animation. If you’re ready to revisit all three of the the SpongeBob movies (or dive into them for the first time), allow us to point you in the right direction, starting with our naive hero’s big screen debut.
The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie
When Plankton (Mr. Lawrence) frames Mr. Krabs (Clancy Brown) for stealing King Neptune’s (Jeffrey Tambor) crown in his latest and most complex attempt to steal the Krabby Patty secret formula, SpongeBob and Patrick (Bill Fagerbakke) embark on a dangerous quest to retrieve the crown and save the Krusty Krab owner and all of Bikini Bottom, too. Directed by Stephen Hillenberg and featuring and awesome all-star cast, The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie is a dazzlingly funny adventure available to stream on Paramount+ now or digitally rented for $3.99 on Amazon.
Stream The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie on Paramount+.
Rent/Buy The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie on Amazon.
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water
In his second big screen adventure, SpongeBob is actually forced to team up with Plankton after they both become wrongfully accused of stealing the secret formula and, indirectly, causing Bikini Bottom's apocalyptic descent. The suspense culminates into an epic, partially live-action stand-off above sea level against the real enemy, Burger Beard (Antonio Banderas), in 2015’s The SpongeBob Move: Sponge Out of Water. Surprisingly, the movie is NOT available on Paramount+ or anywhere else at the moment, but can be rented on Amazon and other VOD outlets, such as Vudu, Google Play, and YouTube.
Rent/Buy The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water on Amazon.
Rent/Buy The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water on Vudu.
Rent/Buy The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water on Google Play.
Rent/Buy The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water on YouTube.
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge On the Run
The third and most recent major motion picture starring SpongeBob and the gang (and even Keanu Reeves and Danny Trejo on the SpongeBob Movie: Sponge On the Run cast, too) exclusively premiered on Paramount+ in 2021 and remains the only place you can stream the film. Of course, Amazon Prime subscribers could also see SpongeBob and Patrick race to rescue his pet snail, Gary, from the lost city of Atlantis with a premium Paramount+ add-on.
Stream The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge On the Run on Paramount+.
If You Have Already Watched Or Revisited All The SpongeBob Movies…
The original Nicktoon that started it all is available to stream on Amazon Prime or on Paramount+, which is also the only place where you can also find the prequel series Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years. When you are done with that binge, CinemaBlend has plenty of fun SpongeBob Squarepants-related content, such as our ranking of the best SpongeBob Squarepants episodes or our ranking of the best special episodes of SpongeBob as well.
Stream SpongeBob Squarepants on Paramount+.
Stream SpongeBob Squarepants on Amazon Prime.
Stream Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years on Paramount+.
For my doubloons, the SpongeBob movies are some of the best animated movies of the last couple decades, let alone some of the best movies on Paramount+ (two of them at least). I'm ready to watch them now! Are you?
